complained to them of the grief that his sister endured. So they took counsel. And in the council they resolved to go to Ireland, and to leave seven men as princes at home, and Caradoc,* the son of Bran, as the chief of them.
Caractacus.
Bendigeid Vran, with the host of which we spoke, sailed towards Ireland; and it was not far across the sea, and he came to shoal water. Now the swineherds of Matholch were upon the seashore, and they came to Matholch. 'Lord,' said they, 'greeting be unto thee.' 'Heaven protect you!' said he; 'have you any news?' 'Lord,' said they, 'we have marvellous news. A wood have we seen upon the sea, in a place where we never yet saw a single tree.' 'This is indeed a marvel,' said he; 'saw you aught else?' 'We saw, lord,' said they, 'a vast mountain beside the wood, which moved, and there was a lofty ridge on the top of the mountain, and a lake on each side of the ridge. And the wood and the mountain, and all these things moved.' 'Verily,' said he, 'there is none who can know aught concerning this unless it be Branwen.'
Messengers then went unto Branwen. 'Lady,' said they, 'what thinkest thou that this is?' 'The men of the Island of the Mighty, who have come hither on hearing of my ill-treatment and of my woes.' 'What is the forest that is seen upon the sea?' asked they. 'The yards and the masts of ships,' she answered. 'Alas!' said they; 'what is the mountain that is seen by the side of the ships?' 'Bendigeid Vran, my brother,' she replied, 'coming to shoal water, and he is wading to the land.' 'What is the lofty ridge, with the lake on each side thereof?' 'On looking towards this island he is wroth, and his two eyes on each side of his nose are the two lakes on each side of the ridge.'
The warriors and chief men of Ireland were brought together in haste, and they took counsel. 'Lord,' said the neighbors unto Matholch, 'there is no other counsel than this alone. Thou shalt give the kingdom to Gwern, the son of Branwen his sister, as a compensation for the wrong and despite that have been done unto Branwen. And he will make peace with thee.' And in the council it was resolved that this message should be sent to Bendigeid Vran, lest the country should be destroyed. And this peace was made. And Matholch caused a great house to be built for Bendigeid Vran, and his host. Thereupon came the hosts into the house. The men of the island of Ireland entered the house on the one side, and the men of the Island of the Mighty on the other. And as soon as they had sat down, there was concord between them; and the sovereignty was conferred upon the boy. When the peace was concluded, Bendigeid Vran called the boy unto him, and from Bendigeid Vran the boy went unto Manawyddan, and he was beloved by all that beheld him. And from Manawyddan the boy was called by Nissyen, the son of Euroswydd, and the boy went unto him lovingly. 'Wherefore,' said Evnissyen, 'comes not my nephew, the son of my sister, unto me? Though he were not king of Ireland, yet willingly would I fondle the boy.' 'Cheerfully let him go to thee,' said Bendigeid Vran; and the boy went unto him cheerfully. 'By my confession to Heaven,' said Evnissyen in his heart, 'unthought of is the slaughter that I will this instant commit.'
Then he arose and took up the boy, and before any one in the house could seize hold of him he thrust the boy headlong into the blazing fire. And when Branwen saw her son burning in the fire, she strove to leap into the fire also, from the place where she sat between her two brothers. But Bendigeid Vran grasped her with one hand, and his shield with the other. Then they all hurried about the house, and never was there made so great a tumult by any host in one house as was made by them, as each man armed himself. And while they all sought their arms Bendigeid Vran supported Branwen between his shield and his shoulder. And they fought.
Then the Irish kindled a fire under the caldron of renovation, and they cast the dead bodies into the caldron until it was full; and the next day they came forth fighting men, as good as before, except that they were not able to speak. Then when Evnissyen saw the dead bodies of the men of the Island of the Mighty nowhere resuscitated, he said in his heart, 'Alas! woe is me, that I should have been the cause of bringing the men of the Island of the Mighty into so great a strait. Evil betide me if I find not a deliverance therefrom.' And he cast himself among the dead bodies of the Irish; and two unshod Irishmen came to him, and taking him to be one of the Irish, flung him into the caldron. And he stretched himself out in the caldron, so that he rent the caldron into four pieces, and burst his own heart also.
In consequence of this the men of the Island of the Mighty obtained such success as they had; but they were not victorious, for only seven men of them all escaped, and Bendigeid Vran himself was wounded in the foot with a poisoned dart. Now the men that escaped were Pryderi, Manawyddan, Taliesin, and four others.
And Bendigeid Vran commanded them that they should cut off his head. 'And take you my head,' said he, 'and bear it even unto the White Mount in London, and bury it there with the face towards France. And so long as it lies there, no enemy shall ever land on the island.' So they cut off his head, and these seven went forward therewith. And Branwen was the eighth with them. And they came to land on Aber Alaw, and they sat down to rest. And Branwen looked towards Ireland, and towards the Island of the Mighty, to see if she could descry them. 'Alas!' said she, 'woe is me that I was ever born; two islands have been destroyed because of me.' Then she uttered a groan, and there broke her heart. And they made her a four-sided grave, and buried her upon the banks of the Alaw.
Then the seven men journeyed forward, bearing the head with them; and as they went, behold, there met them a multitude of men and women. 'Have you any tidings?' said Manawyddan. 'We have, none,' said they, 'save that Caswallawn,* the son of Beli, has conquered the Island of the Mighty, and is crowned king in London.' 'What has become,' said they, 'of Caradoc, the son of Bran, and the seven men who were left with him in this island?' 'Caswallawn came upon them, and slew six of the men, and Caradoc's heart broke for grief thereof.' And the seven men journeyed on towards London, and they buried the head in the White Mount, as Bendigeid Vran had directed them.*(2)
Cassivellaunus.
*(2) There is a Triad upon the story of the head buried under the White Tower of London, as a charm against invasion. Arthur, it seems, proudly disinterred the head, preferring to hold the island by his own strength alone.
CHAPTER XXVIII. MANAWYDDAN
PWYLL and Rhiannon had a son, whom they named Pryderi. And when he was grown up, Pwyll, his father, died. And Pryderi married Kicva, the daughter of Gwynn Gloy.
Now Manawyddan returned from the war in Ireland, and he found that his cousin had seized all his possessions, and much grief and heaviness came upon him. 'Alas! woe is me!' he exclaimed; 'there is none save myself without a home and a resting-place.' 'Lord,' said Pryderi, 'be not so sorrowful. Thy cousin is king of the Island of the Mighty, and though he has done thee wrong, thou hast never been a claimant of land or possessions.' 'Yea,' answered he, 'but although this man is my cousin, it grieveth me to see any one in the place of my brother, Bendigeid Vran; neither can I be happy in the same dwelling with him.' 'Wilt thou follow the counsel of another?' said Pryderi. 'I stand in need of counsel,' he answered, 'and what may that counsel be?' 'Seven cantrevs belong unto me,' said Pryderi, 'wherein Rhiannon, my mother, dwells. I will bestow her upon thee, and the seven cantrevs with her; and though thou hadst no possessions but those cantrevs only, thou couldst not have any fairer than they. Do thou and Rhiannon enjoy them; and if thou desire any possessions thou wilt not despise these.' 'I do not, chieftain,' said he. 'Heaven reward thee for thy friendship! I will go with thee to seek Rhiannon, and to look at thy possessions.' 'Thou wilt do well,' he answered; 'and I believe thou didst never hear a lady discourse better than she, and when she was in her prime, none was ever fairer. Even now her aspect is not uncomely.'
They set forth, and, however long the journey, they came at last to Dyved; and a feast was prepared for them by Rhiannon and Kicva. Then began Manawyddan and Rhiannon to sit and talk together; and his mind and his thoughts became warmed towards her, and he thought in his heart he had never beheld any lady more fulfilled of grace and beauty than she. 'Pryderi,' said he, 'I will that it be as thou didst say.' 'What saying was that?' asked Rhiannon. 'Lady,' said Pryderi, 'I did offer thee as a wife to Manawyddan, the son of Llyr.' 'By that will I gladly abide,' said Rhiannon. 'Right glad am I also,' said Manawyddan; 'may Heaven reward him who hath shown unto me friendship so perfect as this.'
And before the feast was over she became his bride. Said Pryderi, 'Tarry ye here the rest of the feast, and I will go into England to tender my homage unto Caswallawn, the son of Beli.' 'Lord,' said Rhiannon, 'Caswallawn is in
